House Members Debate Constitutionality, Pass Three Bills

Three bills were voted on and passed by the House of Delegates Tuesday.

H.B. 2387

The bill relates to reasonable accommodations under the West Virginia Fair Housing Act for persons with disabilities who need assistive animals. The bill would not only include seeing-eye dogs, but also support animals that one might not think of such as therapy dogs for returning veterans with PTSD.

The bill passed 95-1 and moves on to the Senate.

H.B. 4182

The bill one of the governor’s bills that would supplement, amend, increase, decrease, and add items of appropriations in the accounts of the Volunteer Fire Departments and Public Services accounts, among others, for designated spending during fiscal year 2014.

This bill’s Constitutionality was brought into question Tuesday.

“The Constitution indicates that when we are doing any type of supplemental appropriations such as this after the budget has been passed that it should address one work or purpose and not several,” Minority Leader Tim Armstead said. “Not necessarily an opposition to what the contents of this bill was but a concern that it could call into question the validity of the passage of this supplemental.”

Ultimately, the House concluded that there was enough confidence in the bill’s Constitutionality that it would not be hindered by future court rulings as it passed 94-4.

H.B. 4217

The bill would require annual reports about Medicaid managed care be provided to the Legislative Oversight Commission on Health and Human Resources.

The bill passed unanimously and moves on to the Senate.